Long Slow Beautiful Dance
by TangoAida
Summary: AU: Cory and Topanga go through life's ups and downs. Set to the song 'Long Slow Beautiful Dance' by Rascal Flatts. ONE-SHOT. MY FIRST BOY MEETS WORLD STORY, SO BE NICE, PLEASE.


Disclaimer – I own nothing of Boy Meets World or the song Long Slow Beautiful Dance. They belong to their respected owners. I do own the characters of Sydney Elizabeth and Lucas Allan. I also own the plot. 'Nuff said.

_**Italics **_are song lyrics and thoughts.

A/N: I was listening to this song the other day and thought it would make a good story. Watching the episode entitled 'She's Eating My Baby Back Ribs' this morning also inspired me. MY FIRST BOY MEETS WORLD STORY, SO BE NICE, PLEASE.

Summary: AU: Cory and Topanga go through life's ups and downs. Set to the song 'Long Slow Beautiful Dance' by Rascal Flatts. ONE-SHOT. MY FIRST BOY MEETS WORLD STORY, SO BE NICE, PLEASE.

Genre: Family/None

Rating: K

* * *

Cory Matthews remembered when he first saw Topanga Lawrence. They were in Mr. Feeny's third grade class together. Cory remembered how he couldn't take his eyes off Topanga. She was smart, funny, extremely pretty (although Cory would never admit it out loud) and friendly.

The more time Cory spent with Topanga, he felt himself slowly falling in love with her.

_Sounds like a scene from the silver screen  
Yeah, that's how it was  
Love doesn't always look like a picture perfect storybook  
Ah, but sometimes it does_

He remembered their wedding day and how beautiful Topanga looked on the arm of her father. Cory felt himself grin from ear-to-ear as her father gave her away. Topanga winked at Cory and turned her attention to the priest. Cory stood up straight and also listened to the priest.

_Standing beside her the stars shine even brighter  
And for a moment all the world was, all the world was still  
I knew we belonged together the moment my eyes met hers  
And I thought nothing lasts forever, but maybe this one will_

Cory and Topanga finished up their senior year at college and went to get jobs. Cory couldn't find the right job he wanted, so he worked in his dad's grocery store. Topanga, however, worked as a writer at a local paper. Cory remembered reading her stories in school – they were really well-written and flowed very nicely.

"Cory, are you all right?" Topanga asked one night as they got ready for bed.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was thinking that we should start looking for a house." Cory told his bride. Topanga looked over her shoulder at Cory.

"What's wrong with the apartment?" she inquired.

"Well, let's see. There's rats, the kitchen sink drips, the toilet doesn't flush sometimes and the shower drain is always clogged." Cory said.

"I'm sorry about the clogged shower drain. I'm going to the hair salon tomorrow to get it cut." Topanga told Cory. He stared at her in shock – she had long hair all throughout school and it would be a shame to cut it now.

"But, but, but – you can't cut your hair. It's part of you." Cory said. Topanga rolled her eyes.

"It'll always grow back, honey." Topanga told Cory as she climbed in next to him.

_A deep breath and baby steps  
That's how the whole thing starts  
It's a long slow beautiful dance_

_To the beat of a heart_

Cory smiled as he watched Topanga brush her shoulder-length hair. It had taken a few days to get used to its shortness, but he thought that length looked great on her.

_The world starts to spin again, you learn things you didn't know then  
Feels like the bloom is off the rose  
But you weather a few storms and you pull out a few thorns  
And together the garden grows and grows_

The following morning, Cory woke up to find Topanga not at his side. He started to panic when he heard something from the bathroom. Getting out of bed, he walked to the door and knocked on it.

"Topanga, are you all right?" Cory asked.

"I – I don't know. I can't keep anything down." Topanga answered. Cory pushed open the door and sat by Topanga's side, holding her hair while she puked into the toilet. He hoped that she was okay.

_A deep breath and baby steps  
That's how the whole thing starts  
It's a long slow beautiful dance  
To the beat of a heart_

It turned out that Topanga was pregnant. Cory waited on his queen hand-and-foot. He wanted to do anything to please her.

_It's a long slow beautiful dance, my friend_

_The house is filled with so much love  
We got more than enough for two  
So we've been thinking about having a baby  
I know it sounds crazy, but it seems like the natural thing to do_

The doctor looked up from the ultrasound and smiled at the couple. Topanga was now six months pregnant with twins – a boy and a girl. The two of them were at their doctor's appointment before heading to Topanga's surprise baby shower.

"Doc, what is it?" Cory asked as he watched the doctor clean Topanga's stomach.

"One of your babies – the little girl – has cerebral palsy." The doctor told the couple. She then went to explain what cerebral palsy was and how that would affect her growth and development.

"We'll love her as our little boy." Topanga told Cory as they headed to the restaurant where the shower would take place. Cory took a moment at a red light to kiss Topanga's forehead.

_A deep breath and baby steps  
That's how the whole thing starts  
It's a long slow beautiful dance  
To the beat of a heart_

_Nine months later_

Topanga was in the delivery room, getting prepped for her C-Section. Cory held her hand and told her he would be with her when she woke up.

Their little boy – Lucas Allan – was born first at 5:25 pm. At 5:44 pm, their daughter, Sydney Elizabeth, entered the world. Cory cried as Sydney was placed in his arms. Topanga was nursing Lucas and singing to him.

"Cory, may I have Sydney, please?" Topanga asked, holding her arms outstretched. Cory sighed and handed Sydney to Topanga. Lucas was done nursing, so Cory held him.

Later that day, Shawn and Angela came to visit. Angela was close to her due date. She and Shawn were expecting a boy that was to be named Chet, after Shawn's father.

"They are so sweet and perfect." Angela whispered. She was holding Lucas while Shawn held Sydney. Topanga watched from her hospital bed as Cory took picture after picture of his best friends holding their children.

Shortly after Angela and Shawn left, Eric, Rachel, Jack and Emily – Jack's fiancée – came for a visit. Cory rushed to Emily's aide when Sydney spit-up all over her T-shirt.

"It's no big deal – it's just a shirt." Emily told Cory as he wiped up the spit-up.

The twins were getting hungry, so the foursome took that as their cue to leave. They all waved goodbye to Cory and Topanga and blew kisses to the twins.

_It's a long slow_

The following day, Cory and Topanga were rocking the twins when there was a knock on the door. Topanga's parents – Jed and Rhiannon – entered, smiling broadly. They hugged Topanga then hugged Cory. They looked down at the babies and smiled.

"They are so beautiful!" Rhiannon whispered, stroking her granddaughter's arm with a finger. Topanga smiled and motioned for Cory to put the babies in their incubators so that they could sleep more comfortably.

"What did you name them?" Jed inquired.

"Sydney Elizabeth and Lucas Allan." Cory answered.

"When do you get to come home?" Rhiannon asked.

"Tomorrow. I can't wait for the babies to see their nursery." Topanga replied.

Rhiannon and Jed stayed for a while longer before the twins woke up. Topanga looked at the clock – it was time for their 7:00 feeding.

Cory handed Lucas to her then went to get Sydney. Cory already formed a strong bond with Sydney and he knew that she was going to be a daddy's girl.

_It's a long slow_

_Eight years later_

Topanga, Cory and Sydney cheered as Lucas ran down the field, keeping the soccer ball within his reach. Lucas' team – the Red Bulldogs – were playing against the team that Shawn coached – the Green Gophers. Chet Hunter, Shawn's son – tried to get the ball from Lucas, but was unsuccessful. With ten seconds to go, Lucas scored the winning goal. All of his teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders as the final buzzer rang for the game to end.

"Lucas, I am so proud of you!" Eric – Cory's older brother – told Lucas, giving his nephew a noogie. Lucas squealed with laughter as Cory, Topanga and Sydney came over.

"Way to go, buddy!" Cory told his son, giving him a high-five. Lucas smiled and hugged his mother and sister.

"Good job, Lucas." Sydney told her brother, her tone disappointed. Because of her cerebral palsy, she couldn't play soccer like Lucas. Topanga found something that helped Sydney cope with her balance issues – horseback riding.

"Honey, we should leave now so we can make Sydney's lesson." Topanga told Cory. Cory nodded and hoisted Lucas onto his shoulders.

They were at the stable – Angels Among Us – where Sydney's horse, Hero, was waiting for her to ride him.

"Hi Syd! You ready to ride?" Amanda, the owner of AAU, asked Sydney. Amanda led Sydney over to Hero and helped her get on the gentle black Quarter Horse gelding.

After Sydney's lesson, Cory helped Sydney lead Hero around the arena to cool him down while Amanda talked to Topanga and Lucas.

"There's a horse show next Friday that I would love Sydney to be in. It's a walk/trot show and I think she's ready. However, Hero has a vet appointment that day, so Sydney would be riding Tierra. Do you think she would be all right with that?" Amanda asked.

"I don't see why not. Is Tierra anything like Hero?" Topanga wanted to know.

"She's his half-sister, so I guess you would say she's like him. I would like Sydney to ride Tierra at her next lesson on Monday." Amanda told Topanga.

"That would be fine with me." Topanga said as Sydney and Cory came over to them. Amanda's assistant, Jenny, offered to put Hero in his stall.

_It's a long slow_

Topanga leaned against Cory as they watched a movie. Cory kissed her temple and held both hands in his.

"Cory, I would like another baby." Topanga announced, turning so that she was facing Cory.

"Honey, you heard what the doctor said." Cory reminded her. When the twins were two, she and Cory tried having a baby. In her second trimester, Topanga got very sick and had a miscarriage. A year later, they tried again and Topanga delivered a stillborn daughter three weeks before she was due. The doctor told Topanga and Cory not to have any more children.

"No – I want to adopt like Jack and Rachel did." Topanga told Cory. Cory nodded, thinking that adoption sounded like a good idea.

They ended up adopting a twelve-year-old girl from India named Mari. She was an excellent addition to the family.

_It's a long slow_

_Several years later_

Mari, Sydney and Lucas have left the house. Mari is a large animal vet, Sydney runs a ballet studio and Lucas is on Broadway in the revival of RENT, playing Roger, but is the understudy for Mark.

Chet and Candi – Shawn and Angela's children – are also successful. Chet is a chef and Candi is a fashion designer.

Ravi – the little boy that Jack and Rachel adopted from India – is a business consultant living in New Jersey.

Laurie – Eric and Emily's daughter – plays soccer and is on a team in England called The Lady Jets.

As for the adults, Allan and Amy, Cory and Eric's parents, passed on shortly after all their grandchildren graduated high school. Jed and Rhiannon passed two weeks before they could see Lucas, Mari and Sydney graduate high school.

Cory and Topanga, along with Jack, Rachel, Eric and Emily, were in their elderly years and were close to passing into the next world. Their children and grandchildren stood around their parents' death beds, tears streaming down their cheeks.

Topanga was the first to pass away. Cory followed three days later. Shawn and Angela held hands as they drew their final breath. Eric kissed Emily as she passed away in his arms. He passed away two hours later.

The couples were reunited in the next world for the first time in ages. Their parents were there to greet their children as they entered the next world. Mr. Feeny was there, smiling at each of his former students with pride.

_A deep breath and baby steps  
That's how the whole thing starts  
It's a long slow beautiful dance  
To the beat of a heart_


End file.
